Alert archive / South Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1990

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 60, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

May 21, 1990Cherokee County, South Carolina

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 21, 1990, 5:56 PM EDT for Cherokee County, South Carolina. It was in force for 49 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
May 21, 1990, 5:56 PM EDT (21:56 UTC)
Expired
May 21, 1990, 6:45 PM EDT
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
Area
Whole counties

County Cherokee County, SC

The radar

The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 21, 6:20 PM EDTHail 1.75Cherokee, SC

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in. Storm Data before 1996 records only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail.

The nearest sounding before it

Athens Municipal, GA (KAHN), launched 12:00Z, 9.9 hours before the alert went out and 196 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Athens Municipal, GA at 12:00Z on 1990-05-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Athens Municipal, GA at 12:00Z on 1990-05-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 12 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1302 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
19 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
12 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
37 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

The text of this product is not in the archive. The NWS text archive before 2002 is incomplete.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 21, 2:15 PM EDT, 3 hours 41 minutes before
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Special weather statement, May 21, 4:44 PM EDT, 1 hour 12 minutes before
NCZ 07-09-010-011-012-013-212200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ASHEVILLE NC
444 PM EDT MON MAY 21 1990

...HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SOUTHERN FOOTHILLS...

AT 440 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED TWO HEAVY
THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SOUTHERN FOOTHILLS OF NORTH CAROLINA. ONE WAS
NEAR TRYON IN POLK COUNTY AND ANOTHER NEAR RUTHERFORTON IN RUTHERFORD
COUNTY. THE STORMS ARE MOVING EAST AT AROUND 30 MPH.

THESE STORMS ARE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG GUSTY WINDS..HEAVY
DOWNPOURS AND DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. PERSONS IN THE PATH
OF THESES STORM SHOULD REMAIN ALERT AND BE READY TO SEEK SHELTER
IMMEDIATELY.
GRC
Special weather statement, May 21, 5:17 PM EDT, 39 minutes before
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Special weather statement, May 21, 5:45 PM EDT, 11 minutes before
SCZ001>004-212230-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
543 PM EDT MON MAY 21 1990

A STRONG THUNDERSTORM HAS DEVELOPED IN NORTHWEST CHEROKEE COUNTY.  THIS
STORM DEVELOPED AS AN OUTGROWTH OF A STORM WHICH HAS PRODUCED SEVERE
WEATHER IN SHELBY COUNTY NORTH CAROLINA.

AT 538 PM THE CHEROKEE COUNTY SHERIFF DEPARTMENT REPORTED SMALL HAIL
ALREADY FALLING NEAR COWPENS.  THE STORM WAS MOVING EAST SOUTHEAST AND A
WARNING COULD BECOME NECESSARY IN CHEROKEE COUNTY SHORTLY IF THE STORM
BECOMES SEVERE.

LISTEN FOR LATER INFORMATION.

JONES
Special weather statement, May 21, 5:50 PM EDT, 6 minutes before
SCZ001>004-212230-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
543 PM EDT MON MAY 21 1990

A STRONG THUNDERSTORM HAS DEVELOPED IN NORTHWEST CHEROKEE COUNTY.  THIS
STORM DEVELOPED AS AN OUTGROWTH OF A STORM WHICH HAS PRODUCED SEVERE
WEATHER NEAR SHELBY NORTH CAROLINA.

AT 538 PM THE CHEROKEE COUNTY SHERIFF DEPARTMENT REPORTED SMALL HAIL
ALREADY FALLING NEAR COWPENS.  THE STORM WAS MOVING EAST SOUTHEAST AND A
WARNING COULD BECOME NECESSARY IN CHEROKEE COUNTY SHORTLY IF THE STORM
BECOMES SEVERE.

LISTEN FOR LATER INFORMATION.

JONES

The office that day

Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 21, 4:37 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPCleveland53 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in South Carolina, 1990Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1990

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.